A Massachusetts state commission recently focused attention on health care cost containment and has issued a comprehensive report (see below). Their recommendation, which is coming from other fronts around the land: do away with paying docs and hospitals for procedures and pay with global payments to take care of a specific population (sounds like capitation to me).
The report summarizes that the existing "fee-for-service" system incentivizes docs to provide testing and treatment; perhaps more than is really necessary. (Well…duh…how would you ever make a living under managed care otherwise). Incidently, Massachusetts has led the way with attempting to reform healthcare; virtually everyone in the state is now covered by some form of insurance.
Wayne Gretzky, the famous hockey player, when asked why he was so successful, always replied "because I go where the puck's going to be, not where it is."
Is "fee-for-service" doomed? What if it were? How would you be impacted? So…where's the puck going?
Here's a copy of the report for your dining pleasure.
